A New Beginning?
by Becca118
Summary: A continuation of Connie and Col's story after the last book of CQ, please read and review, this is my first fanfic and any feedback would be really helpful, I will keep updating the story when I can. Thanks to Angelmail and GreatWolf Fanatic once again
1. Six and a half hours

Blue water swirled around Connie's feet and Mew flew overhead, squawking a greeting, then circling down to greet her. Connie held out her hand for Mew to land on.

"Hey Mew," said Connie quietly. The seagull cocked her head, sensing something was wrong. Connie sighed.

"You're right. It's just... Kullervo. I don't know how to tell anyone that he isn't really gone. What if it just turns even more people against me? What if people start thinking I am a monster? What if..." Mew nudged Connie with her beak, cutting her off. She squawked indignantly at the thoughts in Connie's head.

"I know," agreed the girl. "They're my friends, we've been through a lot." Mew nodded her smooth white-feathered head. "I haven't even told Col yet," added Connie, her voice almost a whisper. "That's the part I'm most worried about." Mew nudged her again, as if to tell her not to be silly. The seagull chirped one last time, then took off, spreading her wings and gliding smoothly over the sea. She dipped one wing into the water, then sharply swerved up to avoid a wave, almost as if she were playing with the sea. Connie smiled.

"Goodbye, Mew," she called. "Happy hunting." The universal turned and walked back up to Number 5 Shaker Row. Her worries about her newfound powers slid to the back of her mind as she remembered a more urgent, nerve-wracking, and yet exciting, arrangement. Tonight, in exactly six and a half hours, was her and Col's first date.


	2. Four Hours

Chapter 2

As soon as Connie got inside Number 5, she called out a hello to her aunt, who entered the hallway to see Connie already disappearing up to her room, taking the stairs two at a time. Evelyn shook her head and smiled, sensing that Connie had avoided a face to face greeting because she was nervous.

Connie reached her room and opened the door, entered and sat down on her bed. She breathed deeply, trying to calm herself. Ever since she had first met Col, being around him had always made her happy, and now whenever she saw him, or even just when his name was mentioned, she got butterflies in her stomach. Connie glanced at her watch. She still had over five hours until he was going to pick her up, so it was far too early to start getting ready, but just sitting on her bed was making her nervous, but excited at the same time. She bounced on her bed frustratedly, wishing there was something she could do to take her mind off tonight.

_I know _she thought. _I can ring Jane. She's always good to talk to, and she'll help me calm down and take my mind off things. _Connie pulled her mobile out of her pocket, typed in Jane's number and pressed the green 'call' button. Jane answered after only four rings.

"Hello?"

"Hey Jane."

"Connie! It's good to hear from you. How are you?" Connie smiled. Calling Jane had been a good idea. Why hadn't she thought of it before?

"It's good to hear from you too. I'm fine thanks, how are you?"

"Great," replied Jane enthusiastically. "I'm not really doing much at the moment, but Anneena's coming round later and she'll probably find no end of things to talk about, so it's not going to be very quiet this evening!" Connie laughed, remembering their friend's loud, outspoken, but caring ways.

"So what are you doing today? Anything good?" asked Jane.

"Umm..." Connie stammered, feeling herself blush.

"What is it?" asked Jane, hearing Connie's hesitation. Connie hadn't seen much of her non-Society friends since school had broken up for the half term, and she'd felt too shy to mention it to anyone. Col had admitted feeling the same; he hadn't even told Justin. Skylark, however, had been delighted when he had heard the news, which wasn't hard to keep seeing as when Col had seen him, thoughts of Connie were filling his mind.

"I've got a date tonight," admitted Connie, chewing her lip nervously.

"Oh wow!" exclaimed Jane. "Who is it? How long has it been?" Connie couldn't help smiling at her friend's happiness and enthusiasm.

"It's been a couple of weeks," admitted Connie. "We just didn't say anything because we knew Anneena would ask a million questions and we didn't feel ready to handle them yet."

"True," mused Jane. "So who is he?"

This time Connie paused and didn't reply. This was much harder than she'd thought it was going to be. She hadn't told anybody yet except Argand, and Col had only told Skylark. Col's face surfaced in her mind, and Connie struggled to remain focused on her phone conversation with Jane. Just seeing his face in her mind took her breath away.

"Connie?" prompted Jane softly. She heard her friend exhale deeply on the other end of the phone line.

"He's Col," admitted Connie in a small voice, her thoughts still filled with him. _How could she, plain, black-haired Connie, deserve somebody so popular, so amazing and kind, and- there was no other word she could think of to describe him- gorgeous?_

"Oh my god!" cried Jane, pulling Connie back out of her thoughts. "That's so sweet, I'm really happy for you! When did he ask you?" This time, Connie blushed and smiled again, embarrassed but flattered by her friend's obvious delight for her.

"He asked me at the Society meeting a couple of weeks ago," replied Connie, mentally omitting the finer details from the conversation she would've had if Jane had been in the Society, such as the fact that she had just survived a fight with Kullervo and the meeting was actually a celebration of the fact that he was gone. _Or not quite _she reminded herself, sighing. She still hadn't told Col, or anyone apart from the Trustees, who had promised not to say anything, that she had Kullervo's powers now.

"That's so cute!" exclaimed Jane, grinning. "I'm really happy for you two."

"Thanks Jane," said Connie. "Just... promise not to say anything yet? Neither of us have told anyone, we've only just decided to tell you..."

"Of course I won't," assured Jane. "You can count on me."

"Thanks," said Connie in relief. "I'd better be going to get ready, he's picking me up in about four hours."

"I'd better go too," agreed Jane. "My mum wants me to tidy my room before Anneena gets here. Talk to you later."

"Talk to you later," echoed Connie, putting the phone down. Tossing it lightly onto her bed, she turned to her wardrobe and opened the doors, staring in at the mix of clothes hanging in there.

"Now," she groaned aloud. "What am I going to wear?"


	3. Two And A Half Hours

**Thanks for all the support so far guys, particularly to Angelmail, GreatWolf Fanatic and Darling Summers for the reviews- thanks for encouraging me to keep writing! I won't be online for a few days- New Year and stuff, but I'll be back on Sunday. Anyway, I thought I'd leave it on a nice cliffhanger, so here's the next chapter- enjoy **

Chapter 3

_Tick. Tick. Tick. _Connie glanced at her watch for the third time in the past minute. She had already checked several times, but it definitely wasn't broken. The clock downstairs said exactly the same time. _Two and a half hours to go _thought Connie. She had finally chosen what she was going to wear- a casual/smart pair of dark blue jeans, a black long sleeved top with a silver flower pattern near the hip, and after a lot of thought, her black pair of trainers that she hardly ever wore. For a moment, she had debated going to buy some boots in Chartmouth, but then had dismissed the idea, knowing she wouldn't feel comfortable in them. Connie checked for the sixth time she had everything she needed ready; she knew everything was there, but the waiting was making her nervous.

Restlessly, Connie got up and crossed to her desk, where she began drumming her fingers absentmindedly as her thoughts turned to the location of the date. Col had grinned and refused to say where he was taking her; the only hint he had given was to take a coat and scarf in case it got cold. _That could be anywhere _she thought. _Loads of places mean going outside, just to walk to them. _

Connie sighed. The waiting wasn't doing her any good and was only making her even more tense and nervous. Connie picked up her iPod, a recent birthday present from Col and his grandmother, put both earphones in her ears and selected shuffle. The smooth and soothing tones of _Gotta Be Somebody _by Nickelback drifted into her ears. Immediately Connie relaxed and moved back to her bed, lying down with her head on the pillow and closed her eyes.

Connie yawned and opened her eyes. Listening to music had definitely helped her relax and wind down. She sat up, hoping enough time had passed to allow her to get ready now. She ruffled her hair and felt several tangles as her fingers passed through. She'd need to brush it before she left. Connie glanced casually at her watch again, but what she saw made her heart miss a beat. _It was five past seven! _Connie stared, motionless, at her watch, pleading the hands to change to a different time, any time...

Of course, they stayed where they were. Connie felt numb. She must have fallen asleep. _Idiot! _She cursed herself. She only had twenty-five minutes until Col was coming to pick her up! She pulled her earphones from her ears, turned her iPod off and tossed it onto her bed. Hurriedly, she pulled off her plain, slightly ripped jeans, shrugged off her jacket and blue top. She grabbed her black top with slightly more care, not wanting to rip the material, and pulled it on over her head. Tugging on her jeans, she desperately searched the room for her hairbrush, which she located on the floor underneath her desk. She scooped it up and rushed to her mirror. Seeing her frantic, worried face made Connie stop and take her deep breath.

_Relax _she told herself. Gently tugging her brush through her black mop of hair, she soon had herself looking more presentable. Reaching for her drawer, she pulled out a small bag which contained what little makeup she had. She rarely wore any, but Jane and Anneena had persuaded her to wear some natural brown eyeshadow and a small amount of black eyeliner and mascara when they had organised a get-together to celebrate school finishing for the summer. Connie rolled her eyes as she remembered their good-natured teasing as she searched for her brown eyeshadow and mascara.

Fifteen minutes later, Connie was back in her room and had just slipped her phone into her pocket and pulled on her coat when she heard the doorbell ring. Swallowing nervously, she felt butterflies in her stomach as she heard Evelyn greeting Col. Connie checked one last time she had everything, then turned and headed down the stairs. Reaching the bottom, she looked up to see Col standing there with his thumbs hooked casually through the loops in his jeans. He smiled at her and Connie felt every breath leave her body. She'd forgotten quite just how handsome he looked. Connie smiled back.

"Have a good time!" called Evelyn from the kitchen.

"We will," called Connie. "I'll text you when we know what time we'll be back." Evelyn nodded and turned back to the task of persuading George to eat his dinner. So far he was putting up a stubborn fight, noted Connie. She turned back to Col who smiled again and shyly offered his hand out to her. Connie looked into his eyes and smiled. She took his hand, allowing him to lead her out the door. Shutting the door, she turned to Col.

"Now, where are you taking me?" she asked him. Col's eyes twinkled mischievously and he grinned.

"You'll see."


	4. Col Arrives

**Sorry I didn't update yesterday, I was too busy revising, but here is the next chapter everyone's been asking for! I was originally going to write this chapter about the date, but I got distracted and the date will probably be the next chapter, so please let me know if you think I'm taking too long getting to the actual date! Enjoy **

Col grinned to himself as he handed over the bus fare for him and Connie. As she followed him to the back of the bus, he could tell she was still puzzling over the location of their date. He stood back to let her take the window seat, then slid onto the seat next to her.

"So," he began "Any ideas where we're going yet?" Connie looked at him with a slightly annoyed, amused look on her face.

"Nope," she replied. "Maybe you should tell me."

"Aha!" grinned Col. "I'm not going to tell you that easily." Connie rolled her eyes in mock annoyance and Col couldn't help laughing. Suddenly, both of them were trying to stifle their laughter as they received several angry frowns from other passengers.

"Perhaps we'd better go upstairs," whispered Connie. Col nodded and got up, leading the way up to the top of the bus. To his surprise, nobody else was up there. He froze. _Alone with Connie. Alone with her. _His heart began to beat faster at the thought.

"Col!" hissed Connie. "Are you going to sit down or what?" Col jerked out of his thoughts, realizing he'd been standing at the top of the stairs holding onto the rail.

"Sorry," he said, cursing himself. He moved to the back of the bus and sat down, Connie next to him. Col turned to Connie, deciding to say something, but when he looked at her, his breath completely vanished. _She looks so beautiful _he thought. He knew Connie didn't think of herself as anything special, but to Col she was, and not because she was a universal. _Wow. I'm really lucky to have a best friend- and girlfriend- like Connie. I can't think of the words to make her realise how special and amazing she really is. _

"Are you okay, Col?" asked Connie, glancing up and noticing him looking at her.

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine," he stammered hastily. He was about to look away when Connie's eyes caught his. Looking into her eyes, all rational thoughts disappeared from Col's head.

"Col?" asked Connie softly, unconsciously shifting closer to him. "Is something wrong?"

Neither Connie nor Col could look away from each other's eyes.

"No, nothing's wrong," said Col, his voice barely more than a whisper as the words caught in his throat. Col tore his eyes away from hers, scared he would do something he'd regret. He looked down, then at Connie, and reached out to take her hand in his.

Suddenly, everything seemed to fade away. Col looked up again to see a sparkle in Connie's eyes that hadn't been there before. He smiled at her instinctively. Then he realised how close they had become, without even noticing it. Before he even realised what he was doing, Col lifted his free hand to Connie's cheek. Startled, both of them blushed, but neither pulled away.

Looking into her eyes, Col moved his hand to her hair, playing with it gently. He leant closer to her, meaning to kiss her forehead. Suddenly, their lips touched gently. The shock made both of them pull away.

"I'm sorry," stammered Col. "I don't know what... I know this isn't the most romantic of places but..."

"I know," smiled Connie, to let him know she didn't mind, although inside her heart was racing and the butterflies had returned. She leant in and kissed his cheek, then moved to his lips again. Col was stunned, reeling inside, but he kissed her back.

A few seconds later they broke apart, still looking into each other's eyes.

"Wow," murmured Connie, wrapping her arms around him and resting her head on his chest. Col felt like fireworks were exploding in his chest as he wrapped his arms round her and laid his head on top of hers, cradling her for the rest of the bus journey into Chartmouth.

**Dun dun duuuuuun! I hope you like it! **


	5. The Date Part 1

**Everyone's been begging for an update, I had homework last night -_- but here is the next chapter, before I get caught up doing any more! Also, can everyone let me know in reviews (hint hint ;) ) where you want me to go with the story after I finish Connie and Col's date. At the moment I'm thinking of involving Jane a little with the Society (GreatWolf Fanatic, I promise I didn't steal this idea from you :D I thought of it months ago, just never got round to putting it into words, and I was thinking something a little different from your story anyway. Keep up the good work **** ) Let me know if you like the idea or you want something different! **

Connie walked hand-in-hand with Col down Chartmouth high street, wondering where he could possibly be taking her. As they rounded the corner from the main shopping street, Connie recognised the smaller road as one of Chartmouth's more modern, not quite extravagant, but certainly more comfortable and impressive streets, without being outrageously expensive. She noticed immediately the large restaurant about halfway down the street and almost stopped. _He can't be taking me there! _She thought frantically. _It'll be so expensive, he can't spend that much just on taking me out to dinner!_

Col stepped in front of Connie, smiling.

"Close your eyes," he told her. Connie did so. She felt Col take her hand again and lead her slowly down the street, not rushing her.

"Just trust me," he reassured her as she halted for a moment, unsure of her footing and where she was walking.

"I do trust you," she answered, walking forward again upon hearing Col's voice. She had no idea how far they'd walked or where they were when Col gently stopped her and turned her to face something- what she had no idea.

"Open your eyes," he whispered in her ear.

Connie opened her eyes and blinked as her eyes adjusted to the sudden light from the street lamp. Instead of seeing the large restaurant front as she expected, in front of her was a smaller restaurant with a comforting dark blue exterior. She couldn't see much inside because black muslin drapes had been hung as curtains.

"Look up," Col told her. Connie glanced up to the sign swinging above the door and her heart missed a beat. The sign read _The Golden Dragon _and had a picture of a small creature below the words that looked exactly like...

"Argand," whispered Connie. "Oh Col, thank you!" She threw her arms around him and hugged him.

"I thought it was appropriate," grinned Col, secretly delighted by her reaction as he hugged her back. "The owner is a friend of Dr Brock, actually; he changed the name when you joined the Society. He's a companion to phoenixes, or phoenīcēs if you want the Latin term. You might meet him sometime."

"Wow," whispered Connie in awe. She had never really known that she had supporters in the Society apart from the ones she knew personally; it was nice to realise that not everyone who didn't know automatically held prejudices against her.

"Now come on, we don't want to keep our friend waiting," smiled Col. "I'm sure he'd love to meet the universal." He'd already known what Connie's reaction would be, so wasn't surprised when she shrunk back a little.

"Don't worry," he assured her. "I've told him already you're a bit shy, he's not going to go overboard and make a huge fuss over you. He's not like my grandmother," added Col.

Connie smiled as she remembered Lavinia Clamworthy's reaction to the news about her gift. She allowed Col to lead her inside and immediately a man of middling height who looked in his mid-thirties, with dark red-brown hair came over.

"Col! Glad to see you, mate. And this must be Connie?" He inquired in a friendly manner. Connie nodded shyly.

"Well, good to see you both," he said, smiling in a way that made Connie relax and warm to him immediately. On second look, his hair was more the colour of burning bronze, and he looked fairly even tempered; a surprise at first, him being a companion to phoenixes. She supposed his warm and good-natured temperament were characteristics of phoenix companions.

"Let me show you to your table; I've got one that's at the back, out of the way and a bit secluded, I thought you might prefer it. It's a bit quieter, too. It's my favourite area of the restaurant really."

As he led her and Col to the back, Connie looked around her and took in the warm red colour of the walls, the dark brown wooden furniture and also paintings on the wall illustrating various mythical creatures. She smiled. The place had a feeling of friendliness and ease about it, and she loved it. As they walked, Dr Brock's friend introduced himself as Aidan, although his friends usually called him Red when he wasn't working.

"I have a daughter, too," he added. "Her name's Eryn. I'll introduce you both to her. No doubt we may meet at the next Society meeting for your chapter. Now here we are." Aidan showed Connie and Col through an archway into a small extension, which was empty, decorated with the same warm red and more paintings spanned the walls, ranging from pegasi and unicorns to rock dwarves and water sprites, all the way through to dragons and, of course, phoenixes. What made Connie gasp was the view. Out of the window was a landscape that should have been impossible from a street restaurant. Bathing in the light from the setting sun was a large, rolling green field containing several horses. The one that caught her eye, however, was a dapple grey horse with a mane that when it tossed its head looked like the rippling foam of a wave breaking, and its tail seemed to float in the wind as if it were drifting in water. But she could also sense something else about it, something secret and magical.

"Is he...?" Connie glanced at Aidan, who nodded.

"That's my daughter's companion, Caspia," he said in a low voice so other people in the restaurant didn't overhear. "A water horse. Not a kelpie or one of the white horses though. Water horses are less heard of, partly because they can blend in so easily, as you can see." Aidan indicated Caspia grazing with the other horses in the field.

"I reserved this table for you. Will this be OK?" Aidan referred to Col, showing them a table by the window, screen from direct view by a wooden partition which separated the back room in smaller, cosy areas. The table was dark wood also, but three quarters was surrounded by a comfortable circular seat with red cushion surrounded by a dark wood frame. Col nodded, feeling a peculiar lump in his throat and butterflies in his stomach.

"I'll send a waitress in ten minutes to order your drinks, to give you some time to decide," said Aidan.

"Thanks," replied Col. Aidan nodded, smiled, and headed back to the main area of the restaurant. Col stood aside to let Connie slide onto the seat, then sat next to her.

"Is this OK?" he asked, slightly anxiously. Connie hadn't said much since they had arrived.

"It's perfect!" said Connie. "Thank you so much Col, I had no idea you were bringing me here! I love it!" She wrapped her arms round him and laid her head on his shoulder. "It really is wonderful," she murmured in his ear. "I couldn't think of anyone I'd rather spend this evening with." Col smiled in happiness and kissed the top of her head.

"Me neither," he agreed. He hesitated, then added "I love you, Connie."

"I love you too, Col," she replied.

**I hope you like it guys **** also let me know if you want Aidan and Eryn to be in the story more after this, they kind've came into the story by themselves, I wasn't planning on them being there, I just knew roughly what I wanted to happen in the chapter, i.e. Connie and Col arriving at the restaurant and literally everything else happened as I wrote it, so I hope it's okay :P it took me quite a while to write compared to the other chapters, because it's longer and I wanted to get the scene right how I imagined it **


	6. The Date Part 2

**I'm sorry I haven't updated in ages guys! This week has just been a blur of homework and revising for the exam I had on Tuesday! Now I have a free evening I am getting down to some serious updating, although there may not be any after this until at least Wednesday because my weekend will be busy, Monday is mine and my other's half's one year anniversary, which is exciting! **** Then Tuesday I turn seventeen! O.o so it's gonna be a bit busy, but I'll try and update again after that **

"One bacon pizza to share with extra cheese and two medium chocolate milkshakes?" checked the waitress.

"That'll be fine," nodded Col, smiling. Inside it felt like his heart was cart wheeling with happiness. As the waitress walked away, Connie smiled at Col and took his breath away all over again.

"You're going to have to stop doing that, you know," teased Col lightly.

"Doing what?" asked Connie, puzzled.

"Taking my breath away," grinned Col, wrapping his arms round her and pulling her closer to him. "You're very beautiful, you know," he murmured into her hair.

"Really?" asked Connie, turning to look at him in surprise. She'd never thought of herself as anything more than plain and normal... besides being a universal of course.

"Really," smiled Col, blushing slightly.

"Well, I think you're handsome," admitted Connie, her cheeks flushing red. Impulsively, she leaned forward and kissed his cheek. Col started slightly: he still hadn't gotten used to her doing that, although it had the same effect on him every time. Suddenly, he found his forehead resting against hers and he was looking into her eyes, and he found he couldn't look away.

Connie surprised even herself when she kissed Col's cheek, but she couldn't help it. He'd always been so nice to her and stuck by her when many in the Society hadn't. She'd also really meant it when she told him he was handsome. Staring into Col's eyes, she couldn't tear hers away from his, so both were completely unaware when a girl of sixteen, their age, crept up to the arch, peeked through at them, smiled, then quietly walked away.

Col slowly moved his head to the left slightly, still not breaking eye contact with Connie. He wanted to kiss her, but first he wanted reassurance that she would be okay with it. He still hadn't gotten over that she could love someone as ordinary as him, a companion to pegasi.

Connie had understood the moment Col had tilted his head, although when he had paused, she realised that he wanted to check she was fine with it. She smiled moved slightly closer to him, slowly touching his lips with hers. This time, though, neither of them broke away. Col slowly lifted his hand to her head, running his fingers through her hair. Instinctively he shifted towards her, wrapping his arms around her back.

Connie found his face with her hands and ran her fingers through his hair until her fingers linked behind his head. Eventually, both of them gently broke apart but remained close, smiling giddily at each other.

"Wow," murmured Col, hugging her close.

Twenty minutes later, their meal arrived. Col smiled and took the pizza knife, cutting a slice for Connie, then for himself.

"You can start, you know," grinned Col, noticing Connie waiting for him to cut himself a slice before she began eating.

"I thought it would be polite to wait for you," shot back Connie, although she was smiling too.

"Awkward," commented Col jokily. Connie laughed and picked up her pizza and began to eat.

An hour later, Connie and Col left the restaurant after Col insisting he paid for the meal and thanking Aidan for the private table and excellent service.

"Any time," he said jovially, shaking both their hands. "You're both welcome back any time you wish, your friends too. Have a safe journey home."

"Thanks," said Col. He took Connie's hand and they walked out of the restaurant, back in the direction of the bus stop.

"Was tonight okay?" asked Col anxiously.

"It was wonderful," smiled Connie. "Thanks Col." She squeezed his hand.

"No problem," replied Col. "I'm just glad you enjoyed yourself. It's getting cold," he added, noticing Connie shiver. "Come on, we'd better get you home before Evelyn skins me alive," he grinned. Connie laughed and let him pull her along as he broke into a run.

"Col!" she gasped, giggling as she tried to keep up with him. Eventually Col stopped running and began to laugh at Connie's expression.

"At least we made the bus," he pointed out as the bus came into view and stopped beside them.

"Hilarious," said Connie, rolling her eyes as they boarded the bus, making Col laugh again. He and Connie headed for the top deck of the bus as the bottom deck was full of loud, noisy teenagers heading home after a party. All too soon, the bus ride was over and Connie and Col disembarked to walk the short distance to Number 5 Shaker Row. Outside the front door, Connie turned and hugged Col.

"Thank you," she murmured in his ear. "Tonight was perfect."

"Same here," agreed Col. "See you tomorrow at the Society meeting?"

"Of course," said Connie. "Bye, Col."

"Bye, Connie." Col kissed Connie's cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too." Col gave her one last kiss, this time on her lips, then smiled, stepped back and whistled. Skylark immediately flew into view, using the dark evening and clouds to hide himself from the view of non-Society members. He nudged Col, who almost fell over. Connie laughed, sensing the silent banter going on between the two. She suspected Skylark wouldn't let Col get away without answering some questions about their date.

"See you tomorrow!" Connie called as Skylark and Col took off into the sky.

"Bye!" shouted Col, accompanied by a whinny from Skylark. Connie smiled and headed inside and upstairs to her room, walking quietly so as not to wake George. She looked out her window to see Skylark and Col disappearing into the clouds on their way home.

**I hope you liked it- sorry if it's not as good as usual, I haven't done any story writing since I last updated. Please r+r **

**Becca x**


	7. Society Meeting

**First of all, I know it's been a long time since I updated! I don't know where all the time went :P it's suddenly February and I'm wondering what's happened to January still XD Secondly, thanks for being patient, I know I took a long time! Thirdly, please tell me what you think **

**Anyways, enjoy **

The next day, Connie turned up at the Mastersons' farm early for the meeting, hoping to catch a few moments with Col. She had agreed with him the night before on the phone that they should decide whether to tell anyone about their relationship. Connie wandered up to the barn in time to see Kira coming towards her from the direction of the stables.

"Hey Connie," she greeted warmly. "How are you doing?"

"I'm fine thanks," smiled Connie. "How are you and Windfoal?"

"We're both good thanks," responded Kira. "Windfoal was saying she'd like to speak to you after today's meeting- to do with our last talk after the defeat of Kullervo. Would that be okay?"

"Um... sure," answered Connie. She had a feeling she knew what this was going to be about, but she felt grateful to Windfoal for giving her the opportunity for them to talk in private, rather than with all the Trustees watching. "Do you know where Col is?"

"He's at the stables with Skylark," replied Kira. "Skylark seemed to be rather persistent about something, trying to get Col to tell him something. Maybe you'll make more sense of it than me. Wish Col good luck, nothing gets past that pegasus." Kira grinned and began to walk towards the barn. Connie felt herself blushing as she hurried away.

Connie entered the stable block and immediately reached out for Col through Skylark. She was suddenly in the middle of a furious mental conversation between the two.

"Tell me!" whinnied Skylark. "I want to know!" The pegasus stamped his hooves cheekily in mock frustration. "Connie!" The winged horse immediately turned to her upon sensing her arrival in the bond.

"Whoah!" grinned Connie. "Sorry Skylark, but it's going to have to wait until after the meeting."

"You two are no fun!" protested the pegasus, but Col was already following Connie out of the stables, glad for an excuse to escape.

"Thanks for that," grinned Col as they rounded the corner to the more secluded side of the stable block. He hugged Connie.

"Hey," he murmured.

"Hey," replied Connie, wrapping her arms around him.

"So what do you think we should do about us?" asked Col. "I haven't told anyone yet."

"Me neither," admitted Connie. "I'll try and tell Jess, and maybe Jane. They're our friends so they should know. We should probably wait before we tell Anneena though." Connie couldn't help smiling at the thought of their gossipy, loud, but caring friend.

Col laughed. "That sounds good for the moment. What about Evelyn and Mack and my grandmother? I'm not sure we're ready to be the Society "It" couple yet," he joked.

Connie laughed too. "I doubt that'll happen- can you imagine Shirley and her friends idolising us the "It" couple? Well, maybe you, but not me."

"I couldn't care less what they think about me," smiled Col. "As far as I'm concerned, I've got the only girl I'll ever need right here." He pulled her closer and hugged her again.

"Thanks Col," Connie's voice was muffled by his jacket. Col kissed the top of her head.

"Come on, we should probably go to the meeting now. It'll start soon." Connie nodded and took his hand as they walked to the stables to fetch Skylark.

In the meeting, Kira stood up to address them, then handed over to Kinga, who explained about various groups of Society creatures and companions worldwide who had been leading attempts to contact the creatures Kullervo had managed to sway to his way of thinking.

"Some have told us he has used his shapeshifting powers to brainwash them to his way of thinking," Kinga told them. Connie shifted guiltily in her seat next to Col and Skylark. She had known Kullervo was capable of terrible things, but hearing them from the Trustees made her feel even worse. She gulped. _What if that meant she was capable of those things too? _Col glanced sideways at her, squeezing her hand in reassurance. Connie remembered how understanding he'd been when she'd told him those few weeks ago.

"However, some are not so easy to persuade, or to find," continued Kinga. "There are a group of elusive winter fairies hiding somewhere just to the north of Chartmouth, we believe, that Kullervo may have had contact with. Unfortunately, fairies and their companions are becoming increasingly rare, so we do not have any locally, nor has our universal been able to train with one. Of course, we are using some search groups to look for any other fairies that could aid us in finding them, but our search groups are having little success, which is only to be expected when none of them have the means to communicate with them unless they choose it."

"What fairies is Kinga talking about?" whispered Connie in Col's ear. He shrugged.

"I'm not entirely sure, obviously I've never met one, but they're one of the companion species becoming increasingly rare. The Trustees have never been completely sure whether there are any in our area as our chapter doesn't have any companions to them. Obviously you being able to find them would help greatly, but unless they can teach you on what to expect and how to find them, requiring a fairy and their companion, they can't ask you to help."

"That is all the news for this meeting," concluded Kinga. "Food and refreshments are available outside for all companions and creatures." Gradually, mythical creatures and their companions began to filter outside. Connie made her way out with Col and Skylark, where she was greeted by Windfoal. Connie glanced at Col.

"I'll see you in a bit." Col nodded and moved towards the tables of food, while Skylark wandered off to graze idly with other pegasi.

Connie followed Windfoal into the stables away from the crowd of Society members. The unicorn settled onto the straw in one of the stables and motioned to Connie to join her.

"Now," began the unicorn once they had bonded. "Am I right in guessing your recent abilities, as yet undefined by the Trustees, are something to do with Kullervo?" Connie nodded nervously, lacing her fingers, not trusting herself to speak. Windfoal sensed Connie's doubts.

"It is okay, Universal. I am not here to punish you for what you have done; nor will any of us Trustees chastise you. You have performed a great service, and we are all grateful for that. All I ask is you to share with me what these abilities are." Windfoal looked at Connie with her liquid brown eyes. "I think I can guess. Your secret will not be shared with anyone except the Trustees. Does anyone else know?"

"Only Col," admitted Connie. She felt herself begin to blush. Windfoal sensed this even without their bond, and picked up Connie's feelings.

"Your relationship with the companion to pegasi has changed," noted the unicorn. "Do not worry, Universal, your secret is safe with me and Kira. We are happy for you, you two deserve each other." If unicorns could smile, Windfoal was now.

"Really?" asked Connie incredulously.

"Of course," replied Windfoal. "Now, your abilities?" Connie nodded and stood up. Closing her eyes, she delved into her mind and sought out the form of a silver unicorn. Slipping briefly into a silver mist and reshaping as a unicorn, Connie opened her eyes. Windfoal uncurled her graceful legs and stood, gently touching noses with Connie. The Trustee nodded, and Connie slipped back to her human form.

"Well, Universal, you are even more unique than we thought," smiled Windfoal. "You may go now."

"Thank you," grinned Connie, relieved the unicorn had not been angry at this development. Really, she had been silly to think they might be. Connie turned and ran outside, where Col was waiting for her.

"How did it go?" he asked.

"Great," smiled Connie. "Windfoal understood completely."

"Good," smiled Col, pulling her close and kissing her on the lips. "I'm glad."


	8. New Encounters

**Okay I know it's been a REALLY long time since I wrote another chapter, but I've had so much homework and revision and essay-writing and stress about exam results O.o but I have a free night tonight so I figured I'd finally get around to updating! A huge apology to everybody, but here's the next chapter! =)**

The doorbell rang and Connie swallowed nervously, smoothing back her hair for what felt like the hundredth time. After all the waiting, the time was finally here; her first encounter with a water horse. Below her, she heard Evelyn open the door and welcome Aidan and Eryn into the living room.

As Connie descended the stairs, her hand moved to her neck where the necklace Col had bought her last week hung. It was a silver pegasus with tiny diamonds embedded into the metal, and Connie rarely took the necklace off. Entering the living room, Connie recognised the friendly owner of _The Golden Dragon _with his flame-red hair and easy smile. He immediately jumped up from the sofa and shook her hand enthusiastically.

"Connie! It's great to see you again," he said warmly, immediately making Connie smile. Aidan was the kind of easygoing person you couldn't help but relax around. "How're Col and Argand?"

"Both doing great," replied Connie. "Col's been training really hard the past couple of weeks with Skylark for a Society flying competition or something. He knows more than I do, you'll have to ask him. Argand's coming along so well, she can fly pretty much perfectly by herself now and Dr Brock said in a month or two she might be strong enough to start carrying me on her back!"

"Oh that's great news!" beamed Aidan. "Anyway, let me introduce you to my daughter. Connie, this is Eryn. Eryn, this is Connie."

Eryn stood up from the sofa and Connie noticed she seemed to move with an almost fluid gracefulness. Her chestnut-brown hair cascaded down her hair in loose ringlets and her chocolate-brown eyes sparkled. Connie guessed she was probably about her age.

"Hey," the girl introduced herself, smiling. "It's so nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you, but you probably don't want to hear that." She grinned, sensing Connie was shy and would prefer not to be in the limelight.

"No, you're right," agreed Connie, warming to her straight away. She seemed to have inherited her father's easygoing nature.

"Well, let's go!" Eryn said eagerly. "Me and Caspia have both been wanting to meet since my dad mentioned it. Neither of us believe the rubbish some people have said in the past- most companions struggle with their gifts at some time or another, yours is just different so they don't understand."

"Thanks," said Connie smiling, embarrassed but pleased by Eryn's statement. It was good to know she still had friends and supporters within the Society.

"Come on, girls," Aidan said. "We'd best go. I'll call you when we're bringing Connie back. I'll try not to let my daughter keep her with Caspia for too long!"

"Oh it's fine, take as long as you need girls," smiled Evelyn. Connie grinned and hugged her aunt.

"Bye, see you later," she called, already following Eryn out of the house. Evelyn shook her head and sighed, but she was smiling.

Twenty minutes later, Aidan's car pulled up outside the restaurant.

"You girls go on through; I need to sort out a few things in the office, so grab a drink and go up to Eryn's room for a moment." Eryn nodded and pulled Connie into the restaurant. She led her towards the kitchen and through a door which led to a hallway and some stairs.

"We live up here," Eryn announced. "The living room and kitchen are on this floor," she said as they reached the top of the stairs. Walking to the next flight of stairs, she led Connie up another floor. "My dad's room is on this floor, along with a bathroom and my brother's room when he's here. At the moment he's at university studying to become a vet, so when he's away we use it as a guest room."

"Wow," said Connie. She would love to be a vet, to be able to help rescued and injured animals. "Is he in the Society?"

"Yep, he's a companion to griffins. They're quite rare and unusual; when he had his test, he pointed to both Two-Fours and High Flyers."

"Oh, like my brother," said Connie. Eryn looked at her questioningly.

"Simon, my younger brother, is a companion to the chimera, and both the Two-Fours and Sea Snakes wanted him. He trains separately with a Nemean lion, an Amalthean goat and a snake most of the time, but sometimes he trains with a chimera."

"Wow," grinned Eryn. "He'll have to meet Dan when he gets back from university in the summer." Connie nodded in agreement. She was sure Simon and Dan would get along just fine. She suddenly realised that Eryn hadn't mentioned her room yet.

"Where's your room?" she asked curiously.

"Ah ha," grinned Eryn, her eyes twinkling mischievously. "Follow me." Eryn led to the fourth door in the hallway which led to a spiralling staircase. Intrigued, Connie followed her up the narrow stairway. At the top, Eryn threw open a door to reveal a large, spacious room that was painted a sky blue, and completely covered in posters, paintings and photographs of horses.

"Oh, wow!" gasped Connie, entering the room in amazement. "I love it!" Gazing around the room, she noticed several photographs of Caspia, some with Eryn standing next to him and some of her on his back. As she turned in the direction of Eryn's bed, a huge painting above it caught her eye. Staring at it, she immediately realised it was of Caspia, cantering through his field with his mane and tail flowing like water. She moved closer and noticed a tiny signature in the bottom right corner of the painting. _Eryn Waters. _

"You painted this!" exclaimed Connie.

Eryn nodded modestly. "Yes, I did."

"It's incredible!" Connie's eyes moved over the painting again, looking at the perfect detail of Caspia's sleek, muscled body and the movement of the grass in the wind, the trees in the background lining his field.

"Thanks," smiled Eryn. "I had to take a photograph of him to paint it from that, but it was definitely worth it." She motioned to her easel in the corner of one room, next to a huge bay window that overlooked his field. The tray underneath the easel was scattered with bottles of paint, paintbrushes, drawing pencils, coloured pencils, chalks, scraps of paper and several photographs of Caspia.

At that moment, Aidan popped his head round the door.

"Hey girls," he greeted them. "I've brought you up some cookies and drinks- coke okay with you Connie?" She nodded. "I thought you might want something to eat before you go and play with Caspia," he teased.

"Dad!" protested Eryn. "I don't 'play' with him, I do actually train as well, you know!"

Aidan laughed. "I know you do sweetheart, I was just teasing you," he said, ruffling her hair. Eryn ducked from under his arm, but she was smiling.

"We'll be down in about ten minutes," she told her dad. He nodded and left. Eryn turned to Connie and tossed her a cookie. She caught it deftly in her hands. She had to admit since gaining Kullervo's powers, her ability to catch had improved. She went to sit down next to Eryn on her bed, but as she did so, tripped over Eryn's schoolbag, perched against the wooden frame. She groaned. Maybe her clumsiness hadn't improved so much after all. Eryn grinned but said nothing, and offered her another cookie.

"My dad will be offended if we don't eat them all," she informed her, still grinning. "He made them himself, so we'd better finish them, or God knows what'll happen!"

Connie laughed. "Okay then," she agreed, picking another cookie off the plate and munching her way through it.


	9. Caspia

**This chapter is for Mbali97 for reviewing my chapters so far and kindly dedicating a chapter to me in her fanfic =)**

"This is Caspia," announced Eryn proudly. The grey horse lifted his head and whinnied, trotting over to his companion and nuzzling her hands. Eryn rested her forehead against his and Connie waited for a few moments, not wanting to interrupt their conversation. After a few minutes, Eryn lifted her head.

"Caspia wants to bond with you," she smiled at Connie. "He says he'll talk to you, and maybe take you for a ride?"

"I'd love that," Connie returned the smile and felt butterflies of excitement rise in her chest. She stepped forward and cupped her hands as she'd seen Eryn do, and Caspia nuzzled them. As his soft, velvety nose touched her palms, it felt like small waves of energy were pulsing through her arms. Instinctively resting her head against Caspia's, Connie focused completely on their connection.

_Hello, Universal _greeted the water horse. Connie found that she had never experienced a mythical creature quite like Caspia before. This encounter wasn't like the rough, crashing of waves that resembled her encounters with the white horses; encountering Caspia was like diving smoothly into the sea and being able to experience every nature and element that made up the sea. Each message came like a gentle wave breaking against a beach.

_Hello Caspia _responded Connie mentally.

_It's a pleasure to meet you _replied the horse. _You are wide, like an ocean. I sense you are much like me; we will get on, Companion. _Connie smiled at the horse's statement.

_A dragon told me that once._

_He was right. Would you like to go for a ride now, Connie?_

_Here?_

_Yes. One day you will ride a water horse properly, not me perhaps, but then you will truly see what horse riding is all about. _Connie laughed in their bond.

_What is funny, Universal? _questioned Caspia curiously.

_You should try telling that to my friend, Col _she thought, wryly. _He's a companion to pegasi; he may disagree with you there. _Caspia chuckled.

_I should like to meet him, and his companion, one day. Any friend of the Universal is a friend of mine._

_Thanks Caspia. _Connie smiled. Caspia whinnied at her to mount, and swiftly but gently Connie wound her hands in his mane and pulled herself onto his back. Caspia tossed his mane, causing it to flow like water, and he neighed.

"Now I'll show what riding a water horse is like! Hold on tight, Universal!" Caspia moved into a steady trot, then broke in a canter which soon became a gallop. However, it wasn't bumpy and uncomfortable like Connie had imagined a galloping horse would be. Instead, it was like floating on top of the sea and being moved by waves, but at the same time, strangely like surfing, riding them. She glanced down and saw Caspia's strong muscles rippling under his coat. The ground flashed by in a green blur beneath his hooves, but she didn't feel giddy from the speed they were travelling. Connie laughed, her long, black hair flowing back into the wind.

Eventually, Caspia slowed back to a canter, a trot, a walk and then a halt in front of Eryn. Caspia dipped his head and Connie understood he meant for her to dismount. She slid neatly off the side and landed on the ground. Unexpectedly, a brief wave of dizziness and a feeling like seasickness swept over her for a second, and then was gone.

"Whoah," she exclaimed.

"How was it?" asked Eryn, her eyes sparkling.

"It was brilliant!" enthused Connie. "I can see why you enjoy being his companion so much, it was incredible."

"Just wait until you ride a water horse in sea," whickered Caspia. Eryn laughed.

"We'll have to find you a water horse to bond with," she grinned. "Next Society meeting, I'll introduce you to my mentor, Amie, and introduce you to a few, see who you get on with. Then we can go riding together."

"Sounds great," smiled Connie.

"Oh, and bring Col too- we'll find a nice, deserted spot that's out of the way so he can bring Skylark."

"Sure," agreed Connie. "I'd better go now- I'm meeting Evelyn and Col in town soon. See you at the Society meeting."

"See you," echoed Eryn and Caspia. Connie smiled and ended the encounter with Caspia. It was like stepping off a boat after being out and sea, but after a few moments the dizzy feeling vanished. As she walked away, Connie turned back to wave. Eryn waved back and Caspia neighed.

Grinning, Connie turned and jogged back towards the restaurant where she could see Aidan standing by the window, smiling.

_Today was great _thought Connie. _And this beach trip sounds pretty exciting, I'll mention it to Col later. And maybe I'll find my own water horse? _With those thoughts, Connie said goodbye to Aidan and left the restaurant to find her aunt and Col.


End file.
